Could he do a job against the Dubs on Sunday?
When an elite level hurler or Gaelic Football retires from the inter-county scene they often keep doing the business for their club for years afterwards and former Tipperary netminder Brendan Cummins is no different.
There’s doing your bit for your club, however, and then there’s scoring a whopping 19 points for your club in a crucial championship match, which is exactly what the now RTE pundit did for Ballybacon/Grange last Friday night.
Ballybacon/Grange were taking on Cahir in a loser’s group final in Clonmel, a game they needed to win to keep their hopes of retaining the South Intermediate Championship alive and they did so thanks in no small part to 39-year old Cummins, who scored 19, yes, 19 points, in an eight-point victory. Not bad for an auld lad.
Five of those scores came from play, as well as ten frees, three 65s and one sideline ball in what must have been a virtuoso display from the veteran. We should mention at this stage that he was playing outfield.
Cummins’ heroic display is probably old news to hurling fans in Tipperary at this stage but we only came across it in
a report on The Nationalist website last night - where it was dubbed a 'masterclass of accuracy' - and felt it worthy of greater exposure. What a man.
Following on from this, we want to know if you’re aware of retired inter-county players delivering similar performances at club level long after they’ve hung up their boots on the county scene – Mayo legend Ciaran McDonald, for example, is still banging them over for Crossmolina – so feel free to let us know in the comment box below.
Who said GAA was a young man's game?
Hat-tip to Enda Sheehy for the heads up on this one
